1. Field of the Invention
Applicant""s invention relates to a hanging apparatus for attaching objects to fabric covered walls or furniture. More specifically, the present invention relates to a hanging apparatus used on modular office systems furniture, sofas, chairs, vehicle seats, and sun visors.
2. Background Information
Hanging objects, particularly picture frames, on fabric-covered walls or furniture is difficult with prior art hangers because existing hangers do not securely attach to both the fabric exterior surface and the inner core material of the wall or furniture. Additionally with the prior art, hanging forces are not dispersed into multiple angles of incidence to the wall or furniture, nor are they supported by multiple or dispersed penetration points into the wall or furniture. These dispersion problems with the prior art cause the prior art fabric-covered wall and furniture hangers to pull the fabric exterior surface away from the inner core material and/or cause a sagging condition in the fabric.
Picture hangers have formerly attained commercial success by fastening securely to the inner surface of a wall or object without unduly damaging its exterior surface. However, these devices developed to secure objects to soft wall surfaces do not mitigate the hazard of surface tearing because they may detach from a wall""s inner core material and hang on the fabric exterior surface causing it to rip. Additionally these prior art hangers do not provide adequate support for heavier objects. All hanging object weight in the prior art is distributed solely onto the fabric exterior surface and the weight is centralized at only one or two penetration points. Accordingly, the weight bearing capacity of the prior art is low and the possibility of damaging the fabric exterior surface in the prior art is high.
Pins are also known in the prior art that can pierce fabric. These pins have a wire bend protruding from the fabric for hanging objects. Prior art also contains plastic plates with long wire pins that attach to the surface material of a fabric-covered wall with a hook molded onto the plastic. The prior art hooks are not applicable to plaques or pictures because they are too wide to insert into the hole drilled into the plaque or picture backing. U.S. Pat. No. 5,029,788 issued to Hoskinson, et al and U.S. Pat. No. 4,664,350 issued to Dobbs, et al are specifically designed to attach to the surface only with two or less entry points without hinges or levers to increase adhesion when weight on the hanger is increased. However, these prior art inventions still do not solve the problems that exist with attaching a hanging device to a fabric covered wall or furniture. The present invention; however, does solve these problems.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel hanger that can be attached to fabric-covered surfaces without pulling the fabric exterior surface away from the inner core material.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a novel hanger that can be attached to fabric-covered surfaces without causing sagging.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel hanger that can be attached to fabric-covered surfaces without ripping the fabric exterior surface.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a novel hanger that binds to both the inner core material and the fabric exterior surface of fabric-covered surfaces.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a novel hanger having a front plate, back plate, lower (and in some embodiments, upper pins), hinge pins, and hook/prong.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a novel hanger whereby the hanging forces are imparted mostly to the inner core material by piercing the inner core material in a perpendicular plane with hinge pins while lower pins are used to penetrate the fabric exterior surface and distribute force in another plane perpendicular to the first thereby preventing movement of the present hanger.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel hanger that creates more piercing force to the inner core material when more weight is added to the hook.
An additional object of the present invention is to provide a novel hanger that incorporates two upper pins that provide additional support through the fabric exterior surface.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a novel hanger having a flat exterior for display of advertising information.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a novel hanger designed to accommodate a variety of interchangeable attachment surfaces that can be mounted to a front plate.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel hanger that can be hung in multiples to increase the hanging capacity.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a novel hanger that can be attached quickly and safely by first time users with little or no instruction.
An additional object of the present invention is to provide a novel hanger that has a front plate that can be easily grasped by the user for insertion into the applicable surface.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a novel hanger that has a back plate to which lower and upper pins attach, making it difficult for a downward force to pull any single pin downward and out of the applicable surface.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a novel hanger that securely attaches to both the inner core material and fabric exterior surface while providing the maximum amount of protection to the fabric exterior surface.
In satisfaction of these and related objectives, Applicant""s present invention provides for a front plate attached through a plate junction to a back plate. At the rear of back plate are upper and lower pins that extend outward from back plate. Back plate has slots that hold upper and lower pins. A hinge pin is provided that traverses the upper portion of plate junction and fits into a slot that crosses the top of back plate horizontally. Hinge pin is bent backward and downward at right angles to ensure the vertical portions of the hinge pin do not create a binding condition between the fabric-covered wall or furniture and the plate. Vertical portions of hinge pin are used to initially pin the present invention into the applicable fabric-covered wall or furniture. Once the tips of hinge pin are inserted into the fabric of the fabric-covered wall or furniture, the rest of the hanger will rotate freely on the horizontal axis of hinge pin allowing the upper and lower pins to penetrate the fabric exterior surface and the inner core material at an angle slightly less than 90 degrees.
Attached to the upper portion of the front of front plate is a hook or prong that extends outward and slightly upward from the plate. The hook or prong is used to attach objects to the present invention. The bottom of front plate is suitable for display of advertising information.